Adult-use marijuana legalization could be the first bill Gov. Tim Walz signs into law in 2023, the recently reelected leader is predicting.
“It just makes sense,” Walz said, according to the Associated Press.
“Prohibition didn’t work, we get better regulation, we know what’s in these things, it’s adult use.”
Walz’s confidence stems from the fact that Democrats swept Minnesota’s elections earlier this month and now control both chambers of the state Legislature.
Previously, the Republican-controlled Minnesota Senate stalled efforts to legalize recreational marijuana in the state.
Walz, a member of the Democratic Farmer-Labor party, was supported in his reelection bid by former Gov. Jesse Ventura.
Ventura, who served as Minnesota’s governor from 1999 to 2003 after a pro wrestling career, is pro-legalization.
“That was one of many reasons why I endorsed Gov. Walz,” Ventura told the Minneapolis Star Tribune.
“He would legalize cannabis, whereas Republicans are the ones stopping it.
But Republicans haven’t been completely successful in stopping cannabis reform.
In May, Minnesota lawmakers legalized hemp-derived products, including those containing delta-8 and delta-9 THC.
